Structural Analysis/Design software - Licensing of older versions 2

[LR11]

Can anyone confirm the legality of purchasing an existing licence for Structural Analysis and Design software.
In Australia.
Software such as SpaceGass, Microstran, Multiframe ... among others.
Versions where you didn't have to pay for an annual subscription fee.

 

[human909]

This isn't really an engineering question. It is a legal question. Remember that thing that you usually click "I agree" to. Well most of that spells out the licensing agreement. That said the obligation is generally more on the original purchaser/licencee rather than a subsequent user. Trying to enforce action against those who allegedly infringe on the copyright of software is notoriously difficult.

SpaceGass for a very long time has been licenced to a particular hardware configuration. You'll have trouble transferring it between parties.

(In the past I've definitely had extended 'trials' of various software packages. But in the end it is easier just to pay the fee if you are making a living out of it. It gets harder if you only need something for a couple weeks a year.)

 

[JoshPlumSE]

I think the issue here is the fellow want to "own" the software not rent it. Many of these companies no longer allow this option. Instead, they force you to "license" the software on a yearly basis.

The issue with this type of licensing is that you are entirely at the software company's mercy. They could triple the annual license fee and you'd be forced to pay it if you were in the middle of a project designed using their software.

There is definitely some comfort in knowing that you actually own the software. So, my guess is that this guy already has a "license" agreement with the software company that he isn't happy about and want to go back to using an older version where he isn't at the company's mercy.

That being said, human909 has a good point, you'll need to find a copy of the older license agreement. It might not mention re-selling the software, which means you could buy your older copy off a friend or colleague. Or, it might specifically prohibit it. You really have to read the agreement closely.

 

[JoshPlumSE]

Personally, I think the choice as to which one is better depends on a few things:
1) How they're managed? If the perpetual license is locked to a single machine (or hardware key) it can be problematic to share in an office of multiple people. Therefore, a floating cloud license can be more flexible.
2) Do you like the new features they're coming out with and need them for design? Honestly if the version from 2 years ago does everything you need and the new version doesn't offer anything (other than a slower interface that doesn't work very well yet) then I'd think an older version that you owned would be preferable.
3) Cost. What's the relative price between the two? When you purchase a perpetual license you might payer a higher up front cost, but that may end up being a much lower cost over the years you use the program.

Caveat:
I work for a software company (Computers and Structures Inc) that could be considered a competitor to the software you mentioned. And, I used to work for another company (RISA) that could also be considered a competitor.

FYI:
RISA no longer sells perpetual licenses, but if have an existing perpetual license and you're current with you're maintenance then you are allowed to keep your license. They're doing everything they can (as far as I understand it) to push their users away from perpetual and towards the "yearly lease" type of license.

I'm not too knowledgeable about CSI sales practices, but I believe we still sell offer perpetual licenses (except for CSiPlant).

 

[271828]

I don't know if it's called a "perpetual license," but I have SAP2000 and I am not forced to pay a subscription fee. I pay the yearly maintenance fee so that I keep getting updates.

BTW, the last two SAP2000 updates have been pretty bad compared to the ones in previous years. I used to look forward to updates. Now I'm starting to cringe a little when I see the notifications. Hopefully the updates will get back to the way they were before.

 

[kissymoose]

Honestly if the version from 2 years ago does everything you need and the new version doesn't offer anything (other than a slower interface that doesn't work very well yet)

 

[JoshPlumSE]

I don't know if it's called a "perpetual license," but I have SAP2000 and I am not forced to pay a subscription fee. I pay the yearly maintenance fee so that I keep getting updates.

Your license is almost certainly perpetual. Though you wouldn't have heard that term much from CSI.

At RISA, they use the terms "Perpetual" vs "Cloud". At CSI, we will eventually use the terms "perpetual" vs "subscription". I believe (though you'd have to check with sales / marketing to be certain) that CSI is currently only selling the CSiPlant program with the subscription option. All other programs are still sold as perpetual licenses... with an annual maintenance fee to provide for upgrades and technical support and such.

People do request a subscription license option for other CSI programs. So, we'll be offering it at some point I'm sure. But, not yet....

 

[Agent666]

Spacegass is definitely tied to an individual hardware configuration. Even if you are off maintenance they send you licence file updates yearly. All the maintenance means is you can upgrade to newer versions without any additional cost. So it is perpetual but linked to the original purchaser.

So I'd imagine if you bought a second hand license, it basically won't work unless they were going to provide an updated licence to you. They may allow you to pay some nominal fee to get back on maintenance. But you'd have to ask them about that.

 

[LR11]

Thanks for your responses.
It's just unfair the way it's going.

 

[SethGuthrie]

You can still buy a perpetual license of Mutiframe and Microstran (from your list) or other structural analysis products from Bentley. The first year of support (including any updates) is included, but you don't have to renew beyond that.

 

[JoshPlumSE]

That's good to know Seth! I know I thought that Bentley got rid of perpetual licenses a long time ago. Locked to a single computer or based off of a hardware key? Just curious....

 

[SethGuthrie]

No, we always had perpetual licenses. There are lots of options though.
Our Structural Enterprise License (also know as Structural WorkSuite) includes all the Ram and STAAD structural products at a low price - that one requires annual maintenance.
With everything else you can buy a perpetual license which can be shared across machines using software entitlements (aka license pooling). Another option is to lease the product and pay 14% of the license cost each quarter. We even have some monthly plans.
When a user goes off support (what we call SELECT) then the license does get checked out to one machine.